The New Kid
by Crowlows19
Summary: When the JLA is called to a Gotham private school they find themselves on a wild goose chase to solve a two-year-old mystery. Will they figure out what happened? Or is a broken soul and the one person she trusted forever lost in the halls of this school?
1. Part 1

Hey guys! So this is pretty random, kind of came up with it out of the blue. It's supposed to be creepy and I'm sure if you just imagineit all it will be. Just so you know this might be a little bit OOC but hopefully not too much. This will be a three-parter, by the way.

**Disclaimer: All recognizible characters belong to DC Comics, not me. **

* * *

They had been called to one of the most elite private schools in the country by the President himself. It had taken the JLAall of five minutes to beam Wonder Woman, Superman, Flash, Green Arrow, and Martian Manhunter to the site of the hostage situation. Superman had expected Batman to demand they either leave or simply back off on their arrival but the man was nowhere to be seen.

"Superman!" came the shout of Jim Gordon over the many voices of the parents, media, faculty, police officers, Secret Service agents, FBI agents, and curiously enough, protesting students. "Finally, we could really use your help."

"What's going on with them?" Flash asked jabbing a thumb over at the screaming students. Gordon groaned aloud, looking tired and scattered. For the normally calm and professional cop to be as frazzled as he looked, it had to be bad.

"The students are refusing to leave the campus," Gordon said. "Something about Spartan pride."

"Spartan pride?" Arrow asked.

"Yes, they were warriors of great skill from the land of Sparta," Wonder Woman rattled off. "Even for men they were highly proficient."

"It's also the school's mascot," Gordon replied. "Look, I've got an entire max security wing of Arkham in that school holding about ten students hostage."

"Where is Batman?" J'onn broke into the conversation.

"In the building," Gordon replied. "Along with Nightwing. They went in about an hour ago with radio communications but everything went dead twenty minutes ago. Don't even bother to try using your powers, they won't work."

"Why not?" Flash asked a little shocked at the sudden exclamation of canceling powers.

"Calculator managed to get his hands on a device that would cancel out the powers of the metahumans. He sold it to the Joker for a huge sum."

"Do you know who's being held hostage?" Superman asked.

"No," Gordon said shaking his head and sighing in exasperation. "The teachers can't get a head count and the students are not complying in any way."

"Let me see if I can get something," Flash said and popped up in front of the fence being used to restrain the students a mere second later. A blond haired girl with blue, purple, and hot pink streaks jumped back from the fence in shock before regaining her high society composure.

"What do you want?" she snarled.

"I want to know what you think you're going to accomplish with this demonstration," Flash said looking over her shoulder at the screaming students.

"We aren't leaving," she said.

"Why not?" Flash asked her.

"It's not right," she replied.

"What's not right?"

"Leaving them to die," she said. "We won't just stand by and let it happen. Everyone who wanted to leave already has. Run off with their tails between their legs." A dark haired boy beside her gave a cold smile but didn't make any sound.

"These agents just want to take you to safety," Flash responded not sure how to reply to that. He really did hate Gotham City; the people just weren't all there in the head. Too much Joker gas still floating around he guessed.

"No, they want to take us from our school," she said icily and turned to the boy beside her to whisper something in his ear. He gave a coy smile at Flash then disappeared into the crowd. "You should go find Batman. He probably needs your help." With that she disappeared as well and Flash went back over to the group a little weirded out.

"Well?" Green Arrow asked.

"She said they won't leave their school, that anyone who wanted to leave already has, and that we should go help Batman," he said.

"Then you'd better get inside," Gordon said quickly and they all looked at him. "When these kids talk, it's best to listen."

"What do you mean?" Arrow asked and Wonder Woman nodded.

"We got a call a few days ago with a tip about this attack; only the Sergeant who answered the phone didn't take it seriously. Thought it was just some kid crank calling the station. Turns out the call came from one of the phones in the school and somehow the students found out. That's partly why they're in the state they're in."

"You're saying someone knew this would happen?" Superman asked, feeling a bit indignant. Gordon nodded but said nothing else.

"C'mon, let's get in there," Arrow said and all five of them made their way inside.

* * *

"This place is creepy," Flash breathed, looking at the vast entrance hall of the private school. It was done in a Victorian style, for that was the era the school had been built in, with dark mahogany floors, dark red paint, and creepy portraits of men they'd never heard of. The Feds had already cut the power off and somebody had closed most of the curtains leaving the room in shadows despite all the light coming from outside. There was a huge staircase directly in front of the door and on the wide, first step sat a crystal vase with a single red rose. They had no idea who left it there or why.

"I agree," Arrow said in gruff voice. Wonder Woman was just about to shush them when they heard a small chuckle. Superman felt the hair on his arms stand up at the creepy sound coming from the shadows. He would have used his super hearing to pinpoint their location but Gordon had been right, their powers didn't work in the building.

"Who's there?" Wonder Woman asked calmly as Green Arrow aimed his arrow at a random spot in the shadows. They saw a faint movement and J'onn quickly grabbed Arrow's wrist to force him to lower his weapon. Superman saw why a moment later.

A young boy of about thirteen was slowly inching towards them. They saw his multicolored shoes first then his made-to-look old shorts, the black short sleeved hooded shirt, and lastly his face. He had jet black hair with piercing blue eyes.

"Who are you?" Superman asked cautiously all too aware that the boy could possibly be a trap.

"Tim Drake," he said. "I go to school here." He crossed over to stand in front of them; he didn't look scared and he didn't have that usual look of awe on his face they normally got with kid civilians.

"Are you one of the hostages?" Wonder Woman asked, in Arrow's opinion, unnecessarily. However, the boy shook his head.

"No," he said simply. "Not really."

"What do you mean?" Superman asked.

"You should find Batman or Nightwing, they'll explain it to you," he said then started to walk towards the stairs.

"What do you mean by that?" Flash asked.

"What do you think I mean?" the boy shot back, crouching on the first step and peering into the vase as if looking for something.

"Do you know where Batman and Nightwing are?" J'onn asked. The boy looked up at him and straightened up before answering.

"I'm not their keepers," he said a bit harshly.

"Where was the last place you saw them?" Wonder Woman asked coldly. The others were taken aback by the boy's demeanor but she would not put up with insolence. The kid just shrugged, a gesture she'd always found distasteful.

"The hostages are hidden," he said. "So are the crazies. They went to go find them."

"What do you mean hidden?" Superman asked. The boy gave them a rather creepy looking smile. He crossed from the front stairs to stand just before the all consuming shadows he'd come from.

"Well, jeez, Mr. Kent. How should I know?" With that he disappeared into the shadows leaving a shocked group of heroes behind him.

* * *

They had attempted to follow the boy but he'd literally disappeared. To Superman's credit he'd let the identity thing slide for more pressing issues. They were missing ten hostages, two teammates, an unknown number of super villains, and now a young boy who knew more than he should. They started with a search of the basement opting to stay together because, as Flash pointed out, the worst thing you could do in a creepy building filled with creepy people was split up. Wonder Woman thought he was being ridiculous, as did Green Arrow, but Superman privately agreed feeling a little freaked about how quiet the place was. J'onn gave no indication that he'd even heard the speedster.

They found two police radios that Batman and Nightwing had been using sitting side by side on a crate of old drama department props. They were halfway up the basement stairs when they heard a high pitched scream that could have come from a young girl. Cursing their current lack of powers, they raced back to the entrance hall but found it as deserted as before.

"Look," Flash said quietly. He pointed to the vase which had held a red rose before. However, the rose was now gone and in its place was a finger. A human finger. Superman approached the vase and picked it up before going back to the group. He up turned it and the finger slid into his hand. It was white, not just pale, but pure white.

"Is that the Joker's?" Green Arrow asked.

"I think so," Superman said. "Flash take this to Gordon would you?" He asked the speedster because he knew this place was already freaking him out. There was something about this building that had them all on edge, something that made them nervous. Something just wasn't right. Flash nodded and took the finger heading for the door. When he attempted to open it, it refused to budge.

"Um, guys?" he called back gaining their attention. "The door's locked."

"You're kidding?" Arrow exclaimed while Wonder Woman went to check it out. After proclaiming it a lost cause she and Flash rejoined the group.

"What do we do now?" Green Arrow asked.

"I think we should search the rest of the school and see what we can find," Superman said.

"We would cover more ground if we split up," J'onn pointed out.

"Fine," Superman said ignoring the Flash's obvious nervousness.

"Fine." Came the reply form the other two. Flash, for once, just kept his mouth shut.

* * *

They searched the school top to bottom but found nothing. No hostages, no bad guys, not Batman and Nightwing, and certainly no creepy little boy. At least that was what they thought at first.

Superman and Flash had taken the third floor to search but without their still nonfunctioning powers it was slow going. When Flash turned a corner to a hallway he stopped dead, eyes wide with unexpected shock. Superman ran right into him but instantly registered his teammate's sudden stiffness and looked in the direction he was gaping. He too, froze. He couldn't help it, the entire situation was as creepy and strange as it could possibly get.

The boy, Tim Drake he recalled, was standing with his back to them at the very end of the hall. He was standing directly in front of a large portrait of a young girl no more than eleven, his head tilted up to look into her painted, black eyes. In his hand was a bloodied knife.

"You're late," he said simply and turned to look at them. Superman moved halfway down the silent, dark hall Flash right at his heels.

"Why does that knife have blood on it?" Superman asked and the boy shrugged.

"I found it Mr. Kent," he said a little mockingly.

"You found it?" he asked disbelievingly. He really had no reason to disbelieve the boy other than he was creepy but he couldn't help it.

"Yes," Tim nodded. "In the kitchens. I needed something to protect myself with. Have you found Batman?" The last part came out almost desperate and Superman realized that the boy was scared. It was then he noticed the kid's arm had nasty gash.

"Are you all right?" he asked moving forward slowly.

"Yes," Tim replied then turned back to the portrait. "I take it by your lack of answer, you haven't found them."

"No, we haven't," Superman said. So far Flash had stayed silent for which Superman was grateful for. He preferred to handle the boy on his own. "Can I ask you something important?" Superman inquired as he drew level with the short kid. Tim nodded.

"How do you know my name?" Superman asked and Tim gave a small smile.

"It was easy once I knew Batman's," Tim said and Superman was momentarily shocked into silence. "There are more trails between the two of you than you realize. Don't worry though; once I found them I destroyed them."

"You know who Batman is?" Superman asked not sure he wanted to hear the answer. Tim nodded.

"I've known for years, Superman," he said. "I recognized Robin."

"How?"

"That's a story for another time," Tim said. "But for now, you have a job to do."

"What do you mean?" Superman asked.

"I paid good money for that finger," Tim said. "In case you haven't noticed, this isn't a real hostage situation."

"You brought us here?" Superman guessed not sure if it was true.

"I did," he said. "I told several of the big villain's henchmen that it was a good idea to get their bosses to lay low. When they asked why, I told them there was going to be an influx of heroes for a night. Since it's only been a week since the breakout at Arkham they saw no reason not to lay low for a night."

"What about the Joker?" Superman asked.

"He's been missing for awhile now," Tim said. "He wasn't a problem and I know the guy who was sells body parts. He died the finger white for me. Then I had a few friends spread some rumors, called in a tip, and the rest took care itself. The students are mad about one of the rumors, which is why they were practically rioting when you came in."

"Why go through all this trouble? What do you want?" Superman was shocked that a boy so young could do all of that. Even the Titans would never have thought of something like this in their day.

"I need your help," Tim replied.

"With what?" Superman asked.

"You see this girl," Tim said pointing at the portrait. Superman nodded. "She's a metahuman and she's supposed to be dead."

"Supposed to be?" Superman asked.

"Yeah, two years ago they found her body on the bottom step of the front stairs, you know, where the rose was."

"Okay, are you saying she's not dead?" Superman asked. Tim shrugged.

"Her parents had her body exhumed last week because a detective found reason to believe that they missed something on the original autopsy," he said. "The coffin was empty and for months there have been rumors that she's haunting the school."

"That doesn't answer the question," Superman said taking in the information.

"I don't know if she's dead," Tim said. "That's why I lured you here."

"Why not just ask?" Superman asked and Tim gave snort of laughter.

"And say what? A supposed to be dead girl, whose body is missing, might be haunting my school, administration won't take us seriously, students are angry, and the murderer might still be here? Tell me, would you have honestly answered that call, assuming I could have gotten through?" The sarcasm was heavy and his tone challenging.

"We would have believed you," Flash said suddenly and Tim looked sharply at him.

"I doubt it," Tim said.

"Where are Batman and Nightwing?" Superman asked suddenly. He'd been so wrapped up in the conversation he'd almost forgotten them.

"Alyssa has them," Tim replied.

"Alyssa?" Flash asked confused. Tim pointed at the portrait.

"That's Alyssa," he said and Superman focused on the painting for real this time as did Flash. The eleven year old had blue eyes, a bright smile, and long blond hair; she looked like the perfect American girl. Smart, pretty, full of life, but Superman saw something in those painted eyes, something dark and secretive. He couldn't be sure if her eyes had actually held those emotions or if the painter had put them there. Flash gasped suddenly and Superman turned to look at him.

"I know that girl," he said.

"You do?" Superman inquired. "How?"

"She was outside," Flash said staring at the painting. "She was the girl I talked to. The one who said we should find Batman. She's older and looks a little different but that's defiantly her." Superman turned back to say something to Tim but the boy was gone.

* * *

When they got back to the meeting place Superman reiterated his conversation with the boy to the rest of his team.

"You mean these kids are playing with us?" Green Arrow said his temper flaring after hearing that the girl in the portrait was outside.

"I do not think that is what they are doing," J'onn cut in. "I think they are actually in need of help."

"Okay, but we're here," Flash said. "Why continue disappearing on us and yanking us around?"

"There's something else going on," Superman said. "I don't think it's anywhere near what Tim said it was."

"Why? Because his ghost is alive and outside?" Green Arrow said.

"No," Wonder Woman said. "Superman's right, something else is going on. I don't think the boy can simply tell us what's happening."

"What's stopping him?" Flash asked.

"Many things," a voice growled and everyone started. They looked at the hall next to the stairs and saw both Batman and Nightwing emerge, finally.

"Where have you been?" Green Arrow practically shouted by way of greeting.

"Trapped in the attic," Nightwing said.

"There's an attic?" Flash said.

"Apparently," Batman answered.

"What do you mean by that?" Superman asked his friend.

"It means we were in the library one second and in the attic the next. We didn't open any doors or secret passageways, and the library is on the first floor."

"So, what, you were transported there?" Flash asked.

"That's the only answer we can come up with," Nightwingsaid. "We just found a way out five minutes ago."

"Do you know what's going on?" Superman asked and to his immense disappointment, Batman shook his head no.

"Tim's lured us all here for some reason," Batman said.

"Yeah, we know that," Green Arrow told him. "He talked to Superman."

"He talked to you?" Nightwing asked for some reason sounding surprised.

"Yes, why?" Superman asked arms crossed across his well muscled chest.

"Did he know your real name?" Batman asked.

"Yes, how did you know that?" Superman asked wondering if the answer was actually going to tell him anything.

"Tim knows much more than he should," came vague reply and Superman resisted his urge to roll his eyes.

"So you know this boy?" Wonder Woman asked as the two Gotham heroes finally joined their circle.

"Yes," Batman said shortly. "For a few months now, he helped us on a case." Knowing he'd never tell them about it, they moved on.

"Should we just leave?" Flash suggested. "Like, go back to the police lines and say enough with the games?"

"Can't do that," Nightwing said shaking his head.

"Why not?" J'onn asked his first words to either of them.

"We're locked in," Nightwing said. "All doors and windows locked tight, nothing will budge, hell, nothing will break. All communications are a down too. And I'm assuming you've found you're powers gone?" They nodded.

"We spoke to Tim briefly several hours ago before he disappeared again," Batman took over. "He said Alyssa was blocking all metahuman abilities."

"Do the cops have any way of figuring out that the hostage situation isn't real?" Green Arrow asked. Again, Nightwing shook his head.

"The students are practically rioting out there and with the one's who have already run off it's impossible to tell who's where," Nightwing said. "Plus, Tim managed to get tips to all the super villain that tonight's a great night to lay low if they want to stay out of Arkham."

"How did he possibly manage to pull that off?" Green Arrow asked.

"We have no idea," Nightwing said. "He has some sort of connection." Green Arrow looked as if he was about to say more when a dull thunking sound made its way to their ears. They looked at the stairs, which were completely dark half way up, to see a soccer ball bouncing down. Batman quickly grabbed a flashlight from his belt and shined it at the top of the stairs but there was no one there.

"There's a note on the ball," Flash said noticing the sharpie on the ball when he picked it up.

"What's it say?" Green Arrow asked removing the arrow from his bow that he'd drawn when first hearing the noise. Flash instantly began to read.

_When something is done,_

_That's evil and sour,_

_And the light is gone,_

_And the exits shut forever._

_Do you run and hide?_

_Or is there a reason to fight?_

_Now a child hides,_

_Forever afraid of the night._

_What do you do,_

_For the weak and broken?_

_Will you go?_

_Is there hope for the hidden?_

"Well that's just weird," Green Arrow scoffed.

"What does it mean?" Wonder Woman asked, not quite understanding what the poem was saying. She looked at Batman for an answer but he remained silent.

"I think they want us to stay," Flash said.

"They?" Nightwing questioned and Flash sighed in annoyance.

"They, he, she, it. Doesn't matter; whoever just rolled this to us doesn't want us to leave," he said.

"I agree with Flash," J'onn said. "Whoever is keeping us here wants us to do something for them and it does not look as if they will allow us to leave before we have completed that task."

"What do we have to do?" Flash asked him but this time Batman answered.

"Whatever Tim has brought us here to do," he said.

"That could be anything," Nightwing pointed out.

"No, Tim wants us to find out something about this girl, Alyssa," Batman said. "He's led us to her twice now."

"He said she was haunting the school," Superman said.

"Yeah, and that they found her body on that bottom stair," Flash said pointing to the bottom stair that still held the empty vase.

"Something is very wrong with this building," Wonder Woman said suddenly, shaking her head.

"What do you mean?" Flash asked.

"I feel it too," J'onn said.

"Something very terrible has happened here," she continued. "This boy knows it and now he wants us to know it too." She looked at the vase on the stair and gasped. They turned and saw that another rose had appeared, this one black.

* * *

Well, hope you enjoyed that. Let me know what you guys think. Review!

Part 2: Who is Alyssa? What does Tim want them to figure out? Is there really a ghost in the school?


	2. Part 2

It had been decided that they wouldn't split up, mostly because nobody wanted to. They could put up their brave fronts all they wanted but the seven heroes felt the pain and the terror of the school. Tim knew this because he felt it too. Anyone who entered did. He wondered how long it would be before Alyssa made herself known to the heroes. He'd been watching them since he'd left Superman by her portrait.

They had decided to find out who the girl was. He wished them luck, for there was no readily available information on the dead girl. There was no communication to the outside world and there was no way out. But what else was new? For the souls trapped in this place there was never a way out. Not for any of them, not ever.

That was why he'd lured these heroes to his haunted and messed up school. Maybe they could do what the students hadn't been able to. Maybe they could bring justice to this place. It was their job after all.

* * *

"Are you sure this is a good idea?" Flash asked. The speedster had been all for simply finding a way out, not hunting for clues.

"What's wrong with you?" Green Arrow asked him rather loudly.

"What do mean?" Flash said.

"You're acting really jumpy," Arrow supplied.

"Quiet," came Batman's growl and the two instantly shut up and followed the morose man to the school's main office. The group made their way to where the main secretary's computer was located. Her office was locked but Batman was inside in less than thirty seconds. When he rounded the corner he froze as did the other heroes.

Tim Drake was seated at the desk, feet up, computer screen smashed. The hard drive was missing.

"Nice to see you," Tim said a smile spreading on his face. Superman felt a shiver run down his spine.

"What are you doing in here?" Nightwing asked almost conversationally. He went around the desk and pushed Tim's feet off so he could rifle through the drawers.

"Decided to see how long it would take for you guys to figure out this is where you should be," Tim said with an amused glance at Flash. "Took you longer than I thought."

"Where's the hard drive?" Batman growled. Tim shrugged.

"It was gone when I got here," he replied. "I have no idea what happened to the screen. Alyssa probably got mad."

"What do you mean?" Wonder Woman spoke up. "I thought this Alyssa was dead."

"She is," Tim assured. "Doesn't mean she still can't get mad."

"You really think there's a ghost in this school, don't you?" Green Arrow said mockingly.

"I _know_ there's a ghost in this school," Tim said. "What's wrong Arrow, don't believe in ghosts?"

"No," the blond man said simply.

"Tim, who is Alyssa?" Batman asked knowing they would end up completely off topic if he didn't stop it.

"She used to be a student here," Tim began. "Popular, well liked, nice, soccer player. Then one day they found her body at the bottom of the stairs. Nobody knows why she was killed. No suspects, no leads, no clues. So Alyssa decided to do something about it and she came back and made some noise. Some of us listened and others didn't. Administration blew us off and now you've got a pissed off ghost, rioting students, and the only evidence missing."

"You just said there was no evidence," Flash said.

"There wasn't," Tim agreed. "Until about six months ago."

"What happened six months ago?" Superman asked. Tim paused to glance at Batman but pushed ahead anyway.

"Robin died," Tim said and Batman tensed though only three of them caught the movement.

"What does that have do with this?" Nightwing asked gesturing to the world at large.

"Oh, you'd be surprised," Tim said. At some of their confused looks he elaborated. "Before he died Robin found evidence. I don't know how the case came to his attention but it did, so he got involved. He told me he'd found something, evidence if you will. But he never said what, just that it was in the school and that when he got back he'd get it and turn it over to Gordon."

"But he never came back," Batman said his voice even more devoid of emotion than usual. Tim shook his head and glanced at Nightwing who was standing next to him having finished his search of the desk.

"No," he said. "He never came back, and now we'll probably never know what he found."

"You don't think we can find it?" Flash asked.

"No," the boy replied bluntly. "You know nothing about this school and I can't help you."

"Why not?" Green Arrow asked sounding frustrated.

"Alyssa doesn't want me to," he said.

"Why?" J'onn asked finally jumping into the conversation. He gave Tim a hard look that would have most people squirming but this boy looked completely at ease.

"It counts for more if you're the ones to find it," Tim told him. "I'm not even supposed to be here."

"Oh, and where are you supposed to be?" Wonder Woman asked.

"Outside," Tim said gesturing to the window behind him. "Rioting with the rest of the students."

"Can you give us any idea of where to start?" Superman asked cutting off what he was sure was a biting remark from the archer next to him.

"Yes," Tim said, smile devious and feet propped back up.

"What?" Superman asked.

"Shadows are friendly, screams are clues, and thuds are dangerous," he said. The confused looks quickly returned. "If you find yourself in a place and have no idea how you got there, you're probably supposed to be there so pay attention. Stay out of the walls and don't try to leave. Research is good but no computer will work so don't even bother. If you hear thuds run as fast as you can in other direction. Oh, and I know this'll be hard for you, but don't play the hero." Superman opened his mouth to say something but Tim got out of his chair, went to the open closet and disappeared into the shadows in the back.

Batman took his flashlight out again and shined it inside. The closet was empty.

"What is with the disappearing acts?" Flash asked frustrated.

"Who knows," Nightwing said. "Tim's like that, always in the place you don't expect him to be in."

"With more information than he should have," Batman finished. Everyone looked at them.

"Okay seriously," Flash said. "How do you know this kid?"

"He helped with a case a month ago," Batman said once again avoiding the full answer.

"The boy gave us advice on how to start," J'onn spoke up. "He said research was good; perhaps our first clue is in the library?"

"Great," came the sarcastic answer from Green Arrow. "So now we're on a scavenger hunt?"

"It's not that innocent Arrow," Nightwing said. "An eleven year old girl was killed in her own school and nobody knows why. Even if there isn't a ghost here, Tim has asked us for help. We have to help."

"Fine," the man responded, beaten.

"Maybe we should-" Flash started but was cut off by a scream.

"That came from the entrance!" Wonder Woman exclaimed and they ran back towards the main stairs. Once again they found it empty.

"Screams are clues," J'onn said.

"What?" Flash said.

"The boy said screams are clues," J'onn explained. "This is twice now a scream has led us back to this spot. There must something here." Batman went to the bottom step and stood in front of it looking into the depths of the shadows above. None of them had yet to walk up those stairs. When they'd gone to the different levels they'd taken a different set of stairs by the cafeteria because it had access to every level.

Everyone watched as Batman slowly, deliberately, walked up the stairs; when he'd gotten to the middle he froze. Crouching at the top suddenly very obvious and visible was a young girl. Her face was hidden in her hands, her blond hair dirty, her clothes ripped. She was crying but she didn't appear to be breathing.

"Alyssa?" he asked cautiously. The girl's head snapped up and she stood slowly. Her movements were jerky, as if she wasn't used to moving at all. She slowly came to the top step and took one step down towards him. She stared at him, blue eyes boring into hidden blue eyes. Batman was momentarily speechless.

This was the little girl Tim had claimed to be his friend. A metahuman murdered in her own school. The same girl Jason had tried to help. Batman saw Alyssa for the first time and wondered how one innocent child could be connected to so much in his corrupt city. It was a question he'd have to ask Tim when this was over.

Suddenly Alyssa let out a scream and her body pitched forward. Knowing she was already dead Batman easily stepped aside. He watched her body tumble down the stairs and come to rest on very bottom one. The heroes at the bottom looked shocked as he climbed back down for a closer look.

"Why didn't you try catching her?" Flash gasped out. He wasn't accusing, he was just curious.

"She'd already dead," Batman said his eyes never leaving the girl. "And she screamed."

"Screams are clues," Wonder Woman concluded. At that, Alyssa's body flickered and disappeared.

"What was that supposed to be?" Green Arrow said.

"She was showing us that she was pushed," Superman said.

"We already knew that," Wonder Woman said.

"No," Nightwing contradicted. "Just because she was found on a stair doesn't mean she fell down them. It could have been where her body fell or she could have been placed there."

"Her clothes were dirty," Batman said. "Like she'd been in the woods." He gestured in the general direction of the woods.

"Then what was she doing up there?" Flash asked pointing to the top of the stairs.

**Thud. Thud.** The loud noises caused Flash, already on edge, to jump in surprise. Batman's head swiveled to where the noises came from. He instantly went in the other direction and the others followed with out question. They ended up in library.

The library was multi-leveled with hundreds of books ranging from the latest pop culture fad to a Restricted Section housing one of a kind manuals.

"Now what?" Green Arrow asked.

"Spread out," Nightwing ordered. "If we're supposed to find something we will. They'll make sure of it."

"Haven't you two already been here?" Wonder Woman asked sounding faintly ill at ease. Batman nodded then moved off towards the older section of the library. The group quickly fanned out, each person taking a different section. Superman found himself surrounded by science textbooks; Wonder Woman ended up near the encyclopedias; Martian Manhunter in a fiction section; Batman and Nightwing both went upstairs splitting the Restricted Section between them; Flash ended up along a bank of computers; Green Arrow began rifling through the librarian's desk.

As Wonder Woman walked a book fell off the shelves at her feet. The Amazon quickly picked it up and turned to put it back but couldn't find a place on the shelf. All the books were packed in tightly with no space that would indicate the book had come from there.

She turned it over and saw that it didn't have any writing on the front. It was simply a plain, white paperback. Curious she opened it and found that it was a diary. Glancing at the name on the bottom of the page she saw Alyssa's signature. She quickly flipped to the last entry and read it.

_September 12_

_Tim came back from visiting his parents today. I'm glad because classes get so boring without him. Plus, he's like the smartest kid I know so when I don't get something he helps._

_Tonight we went to a party some of the older kids were having in the woods not too far from he school. It wasn't really what we would call fun so we decided to sneak into the café to get some food. _

_When were in there we found this really weird message on a piece of paper. It was just sitting on the floor so I picked it up. It said that everything would fall apart if the shadows didn't leave. That was it. That was all it said._

_I showed it to Tim but he didn't understand it. I wonder who left it there. Does even mean anything?_

Wonder Woman closed the diary halfway through thinking it was something Batman needed to see and quickly. She had only taken two more steps when she heard a faint noise behind her. She turned quickly but saw nothing there.

"Is anybody there?" she said softly, cautiously. Nothing answered her. She turned again when another book fell off the shelf. This time, however, when she looked to see where it had come from, there was a hole. An encyclopedia had fallen off the shelf. As she stared at the dark space in the books the Amazon felt an uncharacteristic fear begin to creep up on her.

Something just wasn't right with this place; she could feel it in her bones. Something evil resided in this building. Two more books suddenly slid off the shelf leaving an even wider hole. She took a cautious step forward trying to see if anything was pushing them off.

All of a sudden, a small, pale grey arm lunged from the darkness towards her face. The Amazon leaped back and landed against the opposite shelf with a scream that was part surprise part terror. She stared as the small, dead looking arm slowly groped around the shelf as if trying to find her. Then, just as slowly, it retreated back into the darkness of the shelf.

Wonder Woman tore her eyes away when she heard the tell tale signs of her teammates coming. Flash reached her first and looked at her concerned.

"Diana, are you okay?" Superman asked. "We heard you scream."

"I was caught by surprise," she tried to justify. "An arm came out from a space in the books."

"What space?" Nightwing asked looking at the shelf. Wonder Woman turned to point it out but the space had been filled with the fallen books as if they'd never left the shelf in the first place.

"I found this," she said by way of reply handing the diary to Batman. Everyone knew she'd purposefully changed subjects but they let it go. Batman quickly read the last entry out loud, before going to the front and began to read it from beginning but silently.

"'Everything will fall apart if the shadows don't leave?' What the hell does that mean?" Green Arrow exclaimed.

"Maybe she found something she shouldn't have?" Flash suggested.

"We need to speak with Tim," J'onn said. "He will know what the girl was talking about." Nightwing glanced at Batman who steadfastly refused to look up. Superman caught the movement and looked at the both of them in confusion.

"Is there something we should know?" he asked sternly, addressing Nightwing because he knew the former Robin was his only hope for an answer. Nightwing looked at him, a reluctant gleam in his eyes.

"Tim's talked about shadows before," he said. "When I dropped him off at his house the first time we met, he said that the shadows in Gotham were getting bigger. That eventually Gotham would longer be anything but shadows."

"What does that mean?" Wonder Woman asked.

"He was talking about the dead," Nightwing replied. "The more shadows there are, the more lingering souls there are. That's why this place is so dark. The cops have floodlights trained on this place but barely any of it is making its way inside."

"The drapes are closed," Green Arrow pointed out.

"Only on the front windows," Batman said not glancing up.

"Tim said," Nightwing continued. "That the further mankind falls, the darker the world becomes. I never could figure out how he had come up with something like that. He got it from that note."

"That makes sense," J'onn said.

"It does?" Flash asked not understanding in the slightest.

"Yes," the alien replied. "It matches the poem as well. It said the light was gone and the exits were shut."

"It also asked us what we would do," Superman pointed out.

"They're asking us for help," Wonder Woman concluded. "From the shadows."

"No," Batman contradicted. "Tim said the shadows were safe. If the shadows are the dead, then that's where Alyssa is and that's why Tim keeps disappearing into them."

"Because Alyssa was his friend," Green Arrow said. "Then what are they scared of?"

"The thuds?" Flash guessed.

"The murderer," Wonder Woman told him.

"Tim mentioned that the murderer was still here," Superman said.

"The history teacher?" Green Arrow suggested.

"Maybe," Batman said. "Something more is going on here."

"What do you mean?" Flash asked sounding as if he did not want the answer to that.

"This girl knows Tim," Batman said simply.

"There's defiantly something more to that," Nightwing agreed.

"Why?" Superman asked. Batman answered suddenly and his answer was the least expected.

"Tim is Robin."

* * *

Part 3: The mystery is solved


	3. Part 3

"What?" Green Arrow practically growled. After everything that had happened with the last Robin, with Jason, this was entirely unexpected. Batman had a new Robin. How the hell had that happened?

"What do you mean he's Robin?" Superman asked his voice tinged with some concern. After all, this was a sensitive topic.

"He's Robin," Nightwing spoke up when Batman didn't answer. "That's why this is bad. If Tim's calling for help it's for something serious."

"How can you be so sure?" Wonder Woman asked not entirely convinced the boy was capable of handling anything more than the norm.

"We've seen him in action," Nightwing replied. "Trust me, he's good."

"So, what do we do?" Superman asked hoping to steer the conversation away from this latest bombshell. He'd talk to Batman about it later. Well, Superman would talk, the other man would just scowl until he decided he'd listened to enough.

"We have to find Tim," Batman said. "He knows exactly what's happening here. We need him to get Alyssa to release the block on your powers."

"How?" Flash asked. Batman didn't reply. He had nothing to say because he had no idea how this would work. He'd come across the supernatural many times before but never like this. Something very bad was at play and no one knew what it was. He had no idea where Tim was and they didn't have the time to do a search.

Besides, a search would never work. If Alyssa didn't want Tim found they would never find him. They needed to contact Tim in someway and get him to come out. He wasn't exactly sure how and judging by the confused looks of his team they wouldn't be much help. If J'onn only had his powers it would be much easier. He was stuck on a form of communication.

Nightwing however, was not.

"TIMMY!" he shouted suddenly making an already nervous Flash clutch his chest as his heart stopped momentarily. Nightwing ignored the jumps of surprise and turned from the circle to shout towards the main area of the library. "GET OUT HERE!"

"Do you really think shouting will do anything?" Wonder Woman asked sounding nervous. She could feel that something was wrong in this building. Why attract unnecessary attention?

Suddenly one of the monitors of the computers smashed by an unseen force. The group of heroes watched as the screens of all the computers in the library broke one by one.

"I think you made them mad," Green Arrow said but Nightwing wasn't listening. He was already moving towards the library door. They followed him for lack of any other idea.

When he got to the door he opened it with more force than needed and it hit the wall hard probably leaving a dent.

"Nightwing, what are you doing?" Flash almost whispered hoping to make the other man be quiet.

"Making as much noise as possible," Nightwing said stomping out into the hall.

"Why?" Green Arrow asked. Nightwing quickly made his way back to the main entrance where yet another rose was in the vase. This one was white.

"Draw them out," Batman answered for him. It was simple, draw whatever was in that building out from its hiding place and get some answers. They had no reason to believe that the ghosts in the building were dangerous to them. Tim had said as much. Nightwing trusted Tim, so why not? Maybe now they would get some answers.

"Tim! I know you can hear me! Get out here now!" Nightwing continued. Out of the corner of his eye Batman saw the shadows in the corner become darker and more solid. Someone was standing there. He slowly turned his head to get a better look. Whoever they were they were tall and he couldn't make out any details except that their height. This was not Tim. He watched as Nightwing continued seemingly oblivious. "C'mon Tim! Get your coward butt out here and tell us what we want to know!"

"Nightwing! Look out!" came the shout and Nightwing ducked just in time as a bloodied knife was thrown from the corner with the shadow, passing through the air where his head had been mere moments earlier. Batman reacted instantly throwing a Batarang towards the shape only to have it pass right through.

The rest turned to watch the figure in the corner as Tim stepped out of seemingly nowhere to stand between them. The figure began to move towards them but they never saw feet moving. The shadows grew denser and expanded as it moved towards Tim. The already dark room was thrown into pitch black as the figure stopped in front of the boy.

"That was my knife Mr. Randall," Tim said not scared in the slightest. The heroes all looked at each other in utter confusion and, in Flash's case, fear. Whatever this thing was it was violent and Tim obviously knew it. "And these are my friends. I brought them hear to help. Leave them alone and stay out of my stuff." The figure instantly vanished leaving the room much brighter than before. Tim turned sharply towards Nightwing and shot him a glare.

"What the hell?" he said. "Are you trying to die?"

"No," Nightwing growled, drawing himself up to his full height. "I'm trying to get answers."

"You were close," Tim told them. At a raised eyebrow he sighed and continued. "Alyssa gave you her diary. You read about that night?"

"That night you found the note?" Superman asked. Tim nodded and looked over his shoulder briefly as if expecting someone to be there. Batman followed his eyes and saw no one.

"Yeah, um," Tim fumbled.

"What?" Nightwing probed.

"The note was, um, left by someone who shouldn't have been in the school," Tim said. "They'd escaped from Arkham during one of the mass breakouts and had somehow come across the school's legend."

"Legend?" Wonder Woman asked. Tim glanced around again before answering.

"The school's haunted," he said quietly as if it was suddenly a secret.

"Well, yes," Green Arrow stated sarcastically. "We're aware of that."

"Good," he snapped a scowl coming on to his face. "Don't ever become unaware of it." He turned and ran into the nearest shadow, disappearing before any of them could react.

"Nice job, Arrow," Flash said. "That kid is our only lead." Green Arrow just glared at him in response.

"What was he so nervous about?" Superman asked swinging the conversation back to the matter at hand.

"Who knows," Nightwing responded.

* * *

She watched them as they attempted to work through everything they knew about what was happening. She didn't think they'd understand any time soon. They had to hurry before he finished.

The blond haired teenager turned from the screen in the school's surveillance room as Tim walked in.

"Nice disappearing act," she commented. He rolled his eyes.

"They moving yet?" he asked looking at the screen over her shoulder as she turned around.

"Not yet," she replied. "They'd better hurry. I can only keep them so long."

Tim looked at a corner where a dark figure stood incredibly still "Go get them to where they need to be."

The shadow left through the door. The two waited a few minutes before they saw the group of heroes snap their heads in the direction of some unheard sound. Then they started moving towards a section they'd yet to explore as a group. They ended up in a little used classroom on the third floor.

Tim instantly left with the help of a shadow that had been hiding in the corner.

"Thanks Robin."

"Now what?" Flash said.

"We wait," Martian Manhunter said.

"Why?" Superman asked.

"Those thumping noises stopped when we reached this room," Batman said. "This is where they want us to be."

"Why?" Wonder Woman asked. Batman didn't say anything, his version of an 'I don't know'. All of a sudden they heard a humming noise. Flash swung his head about wildly trying to find the source.

"Is somebody humming?" he whispered. Nightwing nodded before moving slowly towards a door in the back of the room. As he reached for the door knob the noise stopped. He glanced at the group behind him as if asking what to do. He looked as if he didn't really want to open the door. A child's giggle came from behind the teacher's desk in the corner.

Wonder Woman instantly moved towards it. Before she could reach it, the classroom door slammed shut. Superman went to it quickly but it was stuck, just like the front door.

"What's going on?" Green Arrow said. They heard a scratching from the walls. Superman went to the nearest one and placed an ear against it, trying to hear the sounds better.

"There's something in the walls," Superman said.

"Tim said to stay out of the walls," Wonder Woman said.

"Tim said a lot of things," Martian Manhunter said. Batman looked at him wondering what he meant. People didn't normally call Tim on things he said.

"Shadows," Nightwing said softly turning back to the door he was standing in front of.

"What?" Flash said confused.

"What's the one thing we've been avoiding?" Nightwing said. When no one answered he finished the thought. "Tim told us the shadows were friendly, we haven't listened."

"What's your point?" Green Arrow said.

"Flash," Nightwing said turning sharply to see his friend, who tensed at the force of the sudden intensity of the other man's attention. "Did you ever meet Jason?"

"Um, no," he said. "Why?"

"That girl you talked to outside," Nightwing replied. "You said that she looked exactly like Alyssa."

"Uh, so?"

"Was anyone with her?" Nightwing asked just as Batman caught on.

"You think he's here?" he said voice hard and low. Nightwing looked at him for a moment before nodding.

"Jason was the only one with any evidence. He promised he would come back to help."

"So he couldn't come back alive, so he came back dead?" Green Arrow asked incredulous. "Why?"

"To help," Martian Manhunter said. "We've already established that something terrible happened here. Jason knew what it was and he promised to help them. Tim has seemed rather desperate to get help with whatever is living in this building."

"But what happened?" Wonder Woman said.

"And what are they fighting against?" Superman asked.

"That man," Nightwing said. "That guy that came to the school, the one Tim just told us about. He was an escapee from Arkham."

"Meaning?"

"He's still here," Batman growled. They looked at him, shocked.

"What do you mean he's still here?" Superman asked. He got no answer. The puzzle had come together out of nowhere. An Arkham breakout; a prisoner seeking shelter; a child with metahuman powers murdered in her own school; reports of a haunting; shadows.

"He's in the walls!" Nightwing whirled around and yanked the door open. The closet was empty but it was extremely dark. He couldn't see the back wall. Out of the shadows came a small grey arm. The arm's small hand extended towards him, palm upwards.

Nightwing hesitated before the taking the hand in his own. He allowed it to pull him towards the shadows in the back.

Before the others could move, he disappeared into the closet and the door slammed shut behind him.

* * *

"The school has been haunted long before the man came. It had been built when the city was small, over a century ago. Mr. Randall had been the first Headmaster; he was murdered by a disgruntled staff member. Mr. Randall has always been a stickler for rules and one rule here is that you don't shout in the halls. That was why he threw the knife at you.

"The school has seen its fair share of murders, unexplained deaths, disappearances, and accidents. It has longed been thought to be cursed. My death was just another number. Another person taken by the evil that lives here.

"With a reputation like that, we should have expected him to be attracted to it. He was evil and he was insane. A terrible combination, I assure you.

"Timmy and I were here the night he made the school his home. We saw the note he dropped and a little later we saw him. It was scariest thing I'd ever seen, Nightwing, and we did the only thing could think of, we ran. Tim was the one who figured it out. The shadows were the souls trapped in this school, in this graveyard. They were neither good nor evil; they would interact with the people here sometimes but never like you've seen.

"We call him September because that was when he first arrived. He has taken to living inside the walls of the school. This building is old, and there are many secret passages and hollow areas that let him move around easily. At first we thought him harmless, but then Tim found out he was an escapee from Arkham and he turned violent. I was the only victim. He chased me from the soccer field after practice through the woods. He then pushed me down the stairs once he caught up.

"September is still here, and Robin knew that. He was rounding up the last of the escapees for Batman when he discovered what happened. He found the proof but he had to leave. He came back to us like me, a ghost, but he kept his word. He's been helping us all night. Robin's in the walls watching September. Robin's evidence was pictures that he took, and a necklace of mine he found in September's sleeping area.

"They were lost upon his death. We tried to get help, we did. Tim told the students the truth but administration ignored all of them. They feel betrayed and angry. They have refused to leave Tim to September. So, we went to you.

"You, who deal with the impossible. You, who would never turn your back on someone in need. You, who can make the people outside believe us. You, who can give me justice. We have turned to you, Nightwing. And you did wonderfully. Tim had to tell you some, but you figured it out for yourself. You should know that September has found Tim. September overheard the conversation he had with you about what was happening and he went after him, same as me. You must hurry. And now I must return you to your friends.

"But first I must thank you for coming."

"Your welcome, Alyssa."

Nightwing blinked and found himself in front of Alyssa's portrait. He stared at the painted eyes until he heard a faint noise beside him. Looking over he saw a sixteen year old boy in baggy jeans and a hoodie.

"Jason," he said trying to be as calm as he could. He was a little shaken up by all that had happened.

"Dick," Jason said. He was staring at the portrait. "Good of you to come."

"When did you figure this all out?" Nightwing asked without preamble. No telling when the two would disappear on him.

"A week before I left," he said. "I gave that promise to Tim a few hours before boarding the plane."

"You came back," Nightwing stated. Jason nodded his head and finally turned towards him.

"I made a promise," he said. "Helping people, it's what we do, right?" Nightwing nodded then glanced at the painting of a girl that been through so much just to get some justice. When he looked back the boy was gone. He now understood why Jim Gordon had once suggested nailing Batman's feet to the floor so he could finish a conversation.

* * *

They waited for over an hour, unable to open the closet door or the classroom door. Batman had eventually tried kicking it down but the doors held tight. When it began to seem like they were never going to leave the damn building the classroom door opened and in walked Nightwing.

He told them what Alyssa had said and the conversation he'd had with Jason, however brief. As the sun rose the doors to the building opened and with it their powers returned. It took Flash and Superman less than a second not only to find September and Tim in a hidden section of the attic but to knock the pale, thin, wild eyed man unconscious. The section of attic was accessible only by maneuvering your way through the walls.

The police flooded the building. Evidence was gathered and the school was shut down. Only after extensive protest was it allowed to reopen. The students refused to turn tail and run.

**Tim Drake:** Tim was hospitalized for a week due to extreme blood loss from multiple stab wounds. He plans to return to school despite parental disapproval. He officially met the League when getting debriefed at the Watchtower. Those who hadn't been there that night were surprised at how much respect one thirteen year old gained from some the team's most influential members.

**The Justice League: **Moved on to the next case by the next morning. The case had been strange and trying but they were told to keep working.

**Batman:** Helped gather all necessary evidence from the school. September would never be tried due to his insanity but the evidence was still necessary. He now had his own file on the man. Jim Gordon managed to get most of the story from him and promised that the next call would be taken seriously. A city wide campaign to encourage students to report dangerous activity in their schools is now under way. They hope to stop another death. It has been named The Spartan Foundation.

**Nightwing:** Went back to the Titans before deciding he needed a break. He and Tim are currently on a tour of Europe for Tim's summer vacation. He plans to return to Gotham City to head the Spartan Foundation.

**Alyssa and Jason: **No longer haunt the school. Both have moved on according to Raven, who was brought in to see if they were still there. A memorial was held in Alyssa's honor. In her honor, the school received a four-foot tall granite, triangular block that sits on the main lawn surrounded by a bed of flowers. On one side is a carving of the school's mascot, on another is a single rose, and on the last is a Robin. The block was donated anonymously.

* * *

OMG! It's done! I'm so tired, and a little hungrey. Tell me what you think and I might share my cookies ;)


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